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Friday, 11 October 2013

The News: Disclosure /\ Miley Cyrus /\ Music Videos

One of the few independent artists shortlisted for this year’s Mercury Prize
award has been dragged down by their label, thanks to the depths of
anti-creative freedom. PMR Records pulled Disclosure's "Help Me Loose Your
Mind" from YouTube today, after a small backlash of comments indicating
the use of drugs = a good time. A statement on the record label's Tumblr reads:
"PMR feel very strongly against the glamorisation of drugs in any
capacity." The reason behind PMR pulling the video is uncertain,
as a few negative comments cannot be the sole reason for a label to destroy the
freedom and artistry of one of their selling artists. If so, then Disclosure
will certainly be very frustrated with the way their label has taken action.

The music video has always been a faux pas in the music industry. It used to
be a way of promoting music through the art form of sound and vision. MTV
popularised the music video in the 80s, but the origins date back to musicals
on film. One of the first great music videos was used as the opening to Bob
Dylan's documentary film Dont Look Back. Dylan's song "Subterranean Homesick Blues" was used
as a promotional piece of video for the film, and was later known to be its
music video. This simplicity of holding up cards with references to the sound
has been replicated by many artists, and Dylan's position firmly accepted as
one of the great music video influences.

It went from being promotional material,
to an art form in the 80s. Michael Jackson's "Thriller" is still
regarded one of the best music videos due to its choreography and story. The beauty
of video is the audience’s reaction and how that video is received by different
people. Some see "Thriller" as an iconic horror music short film;
others see it as a dance recital gone wrong. It was MTV that highlighted the
music video, and labels invested millions of cash in to these videos because of
the promotion and fame they could garner. It wasn't just a simple smile in
front of a camera; it was a dance, or a skit that pushed the video to the top
of the pre-album list. Many artists have gained fame purely through the music
video. One example being the Grammy award winning work of OK Go, for their treadmill
dance routine on "Here It Goes Again". OK Go did something fun, and
the expectation has been on their heads ever since "Here It Goes
Again" hit the internet. Directors of music videos have changed their
focus from promotion and what would look good on TV, to what reaction would
work well on the internet. It's all about what sells. Music videos
of the 90s and today reference many things, mostly: sex, money, drugs, and
alcohol. If it's not just in the lyrics like Rammstein
"Pussy", with its hardcore German lyrics: "You have a pussy, I have
a dick," then it's more than likely in a message portrayed through
an image on the screen.

Now many music videos get banned, mostly from media governing
bodies or website rules, such as YouTube's stance on violence which has banned
many in recent years - most notably M.I.A's "Born Free". This video
is a great example of rule, or an ideological stance getting in the way of
creative expression. The fact YouTube banned "Born Free" in the USA
and the UK pushed audiences to find links to "Born Free", and see
exactly why it was banned. It depicted a dystopian world, which isn't too distant.
Red haired kids were the pull factor to M.I.A's anger of genocide in her
motherland. YouTube didn't find this appropriate, and banned it. "Born
Free" is the perfect example of a music video being taken out of context. It’s
not against red haired kids at all, it's simply using them for the message -
"Born Free" was fighting violence with violence.

When it comes to drugs, the legality and visual aspects differ.
If you listen to Spacemen 3, you'll understand what it's like to hear an album
based around drug use. Spacemen 3's music has never been banned, even though
they sing about lucid dreams, bad trips, great trips, and a comedown - all on
one album called The Perfect Prescription. Let's take this one step
further. Primal Scream's 1991 classic Screamadelica glamourises the use
of acid. Without this connection to drug use, Screamadelica wouldn’t be
the classic album it is today. If you watch the video to "Higher Than the Sun", you'll notice the references to drugs, not just in the
title. Drug use is a serious issue in the music industry, and reports
suggest it’s only getting worse. It's still a choice artists choose to take,
and a choice audiences choose to take. Spacemen 3 famously released a
compilation titled Taking Drugs to Make Music to Take
Drugs To. We all know it's out there, and we all have a choice of accepting
it as art, or rejecting it as a bad influence. It's not often drug use becomes
influential in banned music videos, because of the choice. If you think the 60s
psychedelic artists like The 13th Floor Elevators weren’t glamorising the use of
drugs, then you're an idiot. Many of my favourite songs have referenced the use
of drugs, or highlight drug use through messages - The Velvet Underground's
"Heroin" is a great example of this. But showing an image of drug use
on video, is different to listening to it... right?

I don't think so. If Disclosure's video to "Help Me Loose Your
Mind" was removed for depiction of drug use, then I want to see it. If
this wasn't a story, I wouldn’t care less about seeing their music video. The
fact Disclosure's record label had removed it from their channel only
publicises what the video contains. M.I.A's "Born Free" was so
enticing because it was banned, and the same goes for anything else that has
been censored or banned in the past - a.k.a Sex Pistols. Censorship can be the
most useless aspect of art. It holds back creative expression and when someone can't
express themselves either through sound, or vision, then something's definitely
wrong with their superiors. This brings me to Miley Cyrus who I couldn’t care
less about. She can twerk all she wants and expose herself on industrial
machines for simple messages. It might bring a backlash of sexism, hate, or
mardy feminists moaning about sexuality... But that's the way the music and
video industry has worked for decades. Artists and directors behind the product
of Miley Cyrus know exactly what they're doing, they know exactly what sells
and how to sell it. Cyrus is just a bi-product of their own vision, and she's
bought in to this train ride because she knows how famous and rich she can get
through art. And "Wrecking Ball" is art in itself, just like M.I.A's
"Born Free" and the removed Disclosure video whatever it may look
like. You can’t hold back artistry, and it will be a huge shame if Disclosure
don't reveal their music video.